The Minister of Defence, General Christopher Musa, says he was one of the targets of a coup plot and was meant to be shot by the orchestrators.
General Musa spoke on Channels Television’s Sunday Politics, days after the military said some of the sixteen officers arrested last October will face trial over an attempt to overthrow President Bola Tinubu.
“I was also a target, I am sure you know,” the minister, who is the immediate past Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), said on the show.
“I was supposed to be arrested, and if I refused, I was supposed to be shot,” the Kaduna-born disclosed.
Military to Try Officers
In October, the military arrested “sixteen officers over acts of indiscipline and breaches of service regulations”.
But last week, authorities said “findings have identified a number of the officers with allegations of plotting to overthrow the government, which is inconsistent with the ethics, values, and professional standards required of members of the AFN.”
“Accordingly, those with cases to answer will be formally arraigned before an appropriate military judicial panel to face trial in accordance with the Armed Forces Act and other applicable service regulations,” the Director, Major General, Samaila Uba, said in a statement.
‘Unserious People’
Several top government officials and other prominent leaders were allegedly pencilled to be killed in the coup attempt.
Reports have linked the attempted coup to the cancellation of the 65th Independence Anniversary parade.
Ex-Bayelsa State governor, Timipre Sylva’s house was raided over an alleged link to a coup plot.
According to General Musa, those involved in the coup plot were “unserious individuals”.
“I think these guys were a bunch of unserious individuals. If you look at the calibre of persons [involved in the attempted coup], I don’t know what got into their heads to think they can take on the Armed Forces like that,” the minister said.
The minister said Nigerians would have fought against the coup plotters as they have done in the past.
“What I even said is that even Nigerians would have fought them. Remember, Nigerians have fought against military rule for quite some time. Mr President has been one of them, so for them to wake up one morning and think they can do that in Nigeria, I think they need to reset their brain,” he said.
Nigeria has had a history of coups, especially between 1966 and 1993. But the country returned to democracy in 1999 and has since been in a democratic setting.
The coup attempt came in the wake of a series of military takeovers and attempted coups in West Africa. There was a coup attempt in neighbouring Benin Republic late last year.